The Battle of Stalingrad is the largest land battle in world history that unfolded between the forces of the USSR and Nazi Germany in the city of Stalingrad (USSR) and its environs during World War II. The bloody battle began on July 17, 1942 and continued until February 2, 1943.

Causes and background of the Battle of Stalingrad

As everyone is well aware, the forces of Nazi Germany launched a massive attack on the USSR on June 22, 1941, and their troops advanced rapidly, defeating units of the regular army of the Union one after another.
After the defeat in the attempt to capture Moscow, Adolf Hitler wished to strike where the Soviet leadership did not expect, this target was the city of Stalingrad. This city was an important strategic point that opened the way to oil deposits, as well as the Volga River, the main water artery of the USSR. Hitler understood that the capture of Stalingrad would be a strong blow to industry for the Union.
After the defeat of the Red Army offensive near Kharkov in May 1942, the road to Stalingrad was completely open to the Germans. Hitler hoped, by capturing this city, to undermine the morale of the Soviet army and, most importantly, to motivate his regular units, because the city bore the name of the leader of the Soviet Union.

Composition of forces

Before the Battle of Stalingrad itself, the German army had 270 thousand soldiers, more than three thousand guns and almost a thousand tanks. The German army had air support in the form of 1200 aircraft of the latest fighter models.
The number of soldiers of the Red Army before the start of the battle became almost 600 thousand soldiers, but a small amount of equipment, guns and aircraft. The number of aircraft was more than two less, tanks, by about a third.

The course of the Battle of Stalingrad

The Soviet leadership, realizing that the German army would hit Stalingrad, began preparing for the defense of the city. Most Union soldiers are recruits who have not yet seen combat. In addition, some parts suffered from the absence or small amount of weapons and ammunition.
The Battle of Stalingrad began on July 17, when the advanced units of the Red Army clashed with the German vanguard. The forward detachments of Soviet soldiers held the defense tightly and the Germans had to use 5 out of 13 divisions in this area in order to break their defense. The Germans managed to break the forward detachments only five days later. Then the German army advanced to the main defensive lines of Stalingrad. Seeing that the Soviet army was desperately on the defensive, Hitler reinforced the Sixth Army with even more tanks and aircraft.
On July 23 and 25, the forces of the northern and southern groups of the Germans launched a large-scale offensive. The Nazi army, thanks to technology and aviation, successfully pushed through the direction and took up positions in the Golubinsky area, reaching the Don River. As a result of a massive enemy attack, three divisions of the Red Army were surrounded, a catastrophic situation developed. A few days later, the Germans managed to push the Red Army even further - now the defense of the Red Army was located behind the Don. Now the Germans needed to break through the defenses along the river.
More and more German forces were converging near Stalingrad, at the end of July there were already desperate battles for the outskirts of the city. At the same time, an order came from Stalin, which said that Soviet soldiers should stand to death and not give the enemy not a centimeter of land without a fight, and anyone who refuses to fight and runs should be shot without delay in the same place.
Despite the onslaught of the Germans, the soldiers of the Red Army firmly held their positions and the Germans' plan - a swift, massive blow to immediately break into the city, did not work out for them. In connection with such resistance, the German command somewhat reworked the offensive plan, and already on August 19 the offensive began again and this time successfully. The Germans managed to cross the Don and fortify themselves on its right bank. On August 23, Stalingrad was hit by a powerful air strike, the total number of German bomber sorties was about 2 thousand, entire neighborhoods were badly destroyed or completely wiped off the face of the earth.
A massive attack on Stalingrad began on September 13, and as a result, the Germans managed to enter the city for the first time, the Soviet soldiers did not expect such an onslaught and could not resist it, fierce battles ensued for every street and house in the city. In August-September, the Red Army made several attempts to organize a counterattack, but only a few kilometers were able to break through and with very heavy losses.
Before the Germans managed to break into the city, they managed to evacuate only a quarter of the entire population of the city (100 thousand out of 400 thousand). Many women and children remained on the right bank and were forced to help organize the defense of the city. On the day of August 23, the German bombardment claimed the lives of more than 90,000 civilians, a terrible figure paid by a mistake in the evacuation of the city. Terrible fires raged in the city, especially in the central regions, caused by incendiary shells.
A fierce battle was fought for the tractor factory, where tanks were now being built. Right during the battle, the defense and work of the plant did not stop, and the tanks released from the assembly line immediately went into battle. Often even these tanks went into battle without a crew (having only a driver) and without ammunition. And the Germans moved deeper and deeper through the city, but suffered heavy losses from Soviet snipers in assault groups.
From September 13, the Germans continue to advance mercilessly and by the end of the month they completely push back the 62nd Army and capture the river, now it is in full fire for the German troops, and the Soviet army has lost the opportunity to transport its forces without huge losses.
In the city, the Germans could not fully use their ability to interact with different types of troops, so the German infantry was on a par with the Soviet and she had to fight for every room of a residential building without the cover of her powerful tanks, artillery and aircraft. In the fire of Stalingrad, sniper Vasily Zaitsev was born - one of the most productive snipers in history, he has more than 225 soldiers and officers, 11 of them snipers.
While the fighting in the city continued, the Soviet command developed a counteroffensive plan, which was called "Uranus". And when it was ready, the Red Army went on the offensive on November 19. As a result of this attack, the Soviet army managed to surround the 6th army of the Wehrmacht, which interrupted its supply of supplies.
In December, the German army went on a new offensive, but was stopped on December 19 by fresh Soviet forces. Then the offensive of the Red Army resumed with renewed vigor, and a few days later, fresh tank troops were able to break through to a depth of 200 km, the German defense began to burst at the seams. By January 31, the Soviet army during the operation "Ring" managed to divide the 6th army of the Wehrmacht and capture parts of Paulus. It was soon defeated, and the rest of the 6th Army and about 90 thousand soldiers were taken prisoner.
After the surrender of Paulus, almost all parts of the Wehrmacht began to capitulate, and the Soviet army liberated the city and its environs inexorably, although some parts of the Germans were still firmly on the defensive.

Battle results

The Battle of Stalingrad went down in history as the bloodiest battle in the history of mankind. Also, this battle was decisive during the Great Patriotic War, as well as during the Second World War. After this victory, the Soviet army continued to advance inexorably along the entire front, and the Germans could not stop this offensive and retreated to Germany.
The Red Army acquired for itself the necessary experience of encircling enemy forces and their subsequent destruction, which later came in very handy during the offensive.
It’s sad to talk about the victims of the Battle of Stalingrad - both the German and the Soviet side lost many of their best parts, the amount of destroyed equipment went off scale, but besides this, German aviation also weakened forever, which later perfectly reflected on the attack of the Soviet army.
The world highly appreciated the victory of the Soviet army. It was also the first time during the Second World War that the German army had suffered such a crushing defeat, and in fact it had won one victory after another before. The world saw that the ingenious tactics of the Germans could crack. The leaders of many states (Churchill, Roosevelt) wrote to Stalin that this victory was simply brilliant.

Volgograd- a city in the southeast of the European part of Russia, the administrative center of the Volgograd region, a hero city. It is located on the right bank of the Volga River in its lower reaches. The city stretches for 70 km along the Volga River.

It was founded in 1589 as a guard fortress at the confluence of the Tsaritsa River (from the Turkic "sary-su" yellow water) into the Volga. Until 1925 it was called Tsaritsyn, and from 1925 to 1961 - Stalingrad.

In 1607, there was an uprising against the tsarist troops in the fortress, which was suppressed six months later.

In 1608, the first stone church appeared in the city - John the Baptist. At the beginning of the 17th century, the garrison of the fortress was 350-400 people.

In 1670, the fortress was taken by the troops of Stepan Razin, who left it a month later.

In 1708, also for about a month, the fortress was in the hands of the rebellious Cossacks Kondraty Bulavin. In 1717 it was plundered by the Crimean and Kuban Tatars. Later, in 1774, the city was unsuccessfully stormed by Yemelyan Pugachev.

The city was part of the first Kazan, then Astrakhan province. According to the 1720 census, 408 people lived in the city. In the 18th century, the city had the status of a county.

Since 1773 the city became a voivodship, since 1780 - a county one.

In 1807, less than 3,000 people lived in Tsaritsyn. After the appearance of the first railway in 1862, population growth increased markedly, and by 1900 the population of the city was about 84 thousand people.

The first theater opened in the city in 1872, and a cinema in 1907.

The first institute (Stalingrad Tractor Institute) was opened in the city in 1930, and a pedagogical institute was opened a year later.

During the Civil War, fierce battles took place for Tsaritsyn, which received the name "Defense of Tsaritsyn" in Soviet historiography. Since 1920, Tsaritsyn has been the center of the Tsaritsyn province. In 1925 the city was renamed Stalingrad. Until 1928, Stalingrad was the center of the district within the Nizhnevolzhsky region, in 1932 - the center of the Nizhnevolzhsky region. In 1934, after the division of the Lower Volga region into Saratov and Stalingrad, Stalingrad became the center of the latter. In 1936, the Stalingrad region was transformed into the Stalingrad region.

The most serious shock in the history of the city was the Great Patriotic War and the Battle of Stalingrad. The Headquarters of the Supreme High Command sent the 62nd, 63rd and 64th armies to the Stalingrad direction. On July 12, the Stalingrad Front was created, which was faced with the task, defending itself in a strip 520 kilometers wide, to stop the further advance of the enemy. On July 17, 1942, one of the greatest battles of the Great Patriotic and World War II began - the Battle of Stalingrad, which lasted 200 days and nights. The Nazis sought to capture Stalingrad as soon as possible.

On August 23, the city was subjected to a terrible bombardment, which destroyed or seriously damaged most of the city's buildings. The Nazi troops broke through to the Volga north of Stalingrad. Workers, the city police, units of the NKVD troops, sailors of the Volga military flotilla, cadets of military schools stood up to defend the city.

On August 25, a state of siege was introduced in Stalingrad. Up to 50 thousand workers of Stalingrad joined the ranks of the people's militia. 150 thousand workers of the Stalingrad factories, under the conditions of continuous bombardment from the air and under the most severe artillery fire, gave the front tanks, cannons, mortars, Katyushas, ​​as well as shells. On the outskirts of Stalingrad and in the city itself, four defensive bypasses were built. In total, by the beginning of the defense, up to 2,750 kilometers of trenches and communications, 1,860 kilometers of anti-tank ditches were built.

By September 12, 1942, despite the heroic resistance of the Soviet troops, the enemy came close to the city. The whole country came to the aid of Stalingrad. During the defensive battles, the fascist German troops lost about 700,000 killed and wounded, more than 2,000 guns and mortars, more than a thousand tanks, assault guns and other equipment.

By November 19, 1942, favorable conditions had developed for the transition of the Soviet troops to the counteroffensive.

It took the Soviet troops 75 days and nights to encircle and defeat the Nazi troops near Stalingrad. The population of the Stalingrad region provided great assistance to the troops in preparing the counteroffensive. The Volga military flotilla played an important role in the battle for Stalingrad. In September-November alone, the flotilla transported 65 thousand soldiers, up to 2.5 thousand tons of various cargoes, to the right bank of the Volga.

In January 1943, the Nazi troops stationed in the city were defeated. On January 31, the commander of the 6th German Army, Field Marshal F. Paulus, who was with his headquarters in the basement of the central department store, surrendered. On February 2, the last Nazi units capitulated. During the Battle of Stalingrad, the fascist bloc lost about 1.5 million soldiers and officers killed, wounded, captured and missing.

For military distinctions, 44 formations and units were given the honorary names of Stalingrad, Kantemirovskoye, Tatsinskoye. 55 formations and units were awarded orders, 183 - became guards, 112 of the most distinguished soldiers were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad", established on December 22, 1942, was awarded to over 700 thousand participants in the battle.

Formally, the decision to rename the newly rebuilt Stalingrad to Volgograd was made by the Central Committee of the CPSU "at the request of the working people" on November 10, 1961 - just a week and a half after the completion of the XXII Congress of the Communist Party in Moscow. But in fact, it turned out to be quite logical for those times, a continuation of the anti-Stalinist campaign that unfolded at the main party forum. The apotheosis of which was the removal of Stalin's body from the Mausoleum, secret from the people and even most of the party. And the hasty reburial of the now former and not at all terrible General Secretary near the Kremlin wall - late at night, without the obligatory speeches, flowers, honorary and salute in such cases.

It is curious that when taking such a state decision, none of the Soviet leaders dared to declare its necessity and importance personally, from the rostrum of the same congress. Including head of state and party Nikita Khrushchev. The modest party official, secretary of the Leningrad Regional Party Committee Ivan Spiridonov, who was soon safely dismissed, was instructed to "voice" the leading opinion.

One of the many decisions of the Central Committee, designed to finally eliminate the consequences of the so-called personality cult, was the renaming of all settlements previously named after Stalin - Ukrainian Stalino (now Donetsk), Tajikistani Stalinabad (Dushanbe), Georgian-Ossetian Staliniri (Tskhinvali), German Stalinstadt (Eisenhuttenstadt), Russian Stalinsk (Novokuznetsk) and the hero city of Stalingrad. Moreover, the latter did not receive the historical name Tsaritsyn, but, without further ado, was named after the river flowing in it - Volgograd. Perhaps this was due to the fact that Tsaritsyn could remind people of the not so old days of the monarchy.

Even the historical fact that the name of the battle of Stalingrad, key in the Great Patriotic War, passed from the past to the present and has survived to this day, did not influence the decision of the party leaders. And that the whole world calls the city where it took place at the turn of 1942 and 1943 exactly Stalingrad. At the same time, focusing not on the late generalissimo and commander in chief, but on the truly steely courage and heroism of the Soviet soldiers who defended the city and defeated the Nazis.

Not for kings

The earliest historical mention of the city on the Volga is dated July 2, 1589. And its first name was Tsaritsyn. The opinions of historians on this matter, by the way, differ. Some of them believe that it comes from the phrase Sary-chin (in translation - the Yellow Island). Others point out that the river Tsaritsa flowed not far from the border settlement of the archers of the sixteenth century. But both those and others agreed on one thing: the name has no special relation to the queen, and indeed to the monarchy. Consequently, Stalingrad in 1961 could well have returned its former name.

Was Stalin angry?

Historical documents of the early Soviet times show that the initiator of the renaming of Tsaritsyn to Stalingrad, which happened on April 10, 1925, was not Joseph Stalin himself and not one of the communists of a lower leadership level, but ordinary residents of the city, an impersonal public. Like, in this way the workers and intellectuals wanted "dear Joseph Vissarionovich" for participating in the defense of Tsaritsyn during the Civil War. They say that Stalin, having learned about the initiative of the townspeople, even expressed displeasure about this. However, he did not cancel the decision of the City Council. And soon thousands of settlements, streets, football teams and enterprises named after the “leader of the peoples” appeared in the USSR.

Tsaritsyn or Stalingrad

Several decades after the name of Stalin disappeared from Soviet maps, it seemed, forever, a discussion broke out in Russian society and in Volgograd itself about whether it is worth returning the historical name to the city? And if so, which of the two previous ones? Even Russian presidents Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin made their contribution to the unfolding process of discussions and disputes, at various times offering the townspeople to express their opinion on this matter at a referendum and promising to take it into account. And the first one did it on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, the second one - at a meeting with veterans of the Great Patriotic War in France.

And on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Stalingrad, the country was surprised by the deputies of the local Duma. Taking into account, according to them, the numerous requests of veterans, they decided to consider Volgograd as Stalingrad for six days a year. Such memorable dates at the local legislative level are:
February 2 - the day of the final victory in the Battle of Stalingrad;
May 9 - Victory Day;
June 22 - Day of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War;
August 23 - Day of Remembrance for the victims of the most bloody bombing of the city;
September 2 - Day of the end of World War II;
November 19 - Day of the beginning of the defeat of the Nazis near Stalingrad.

Education

What is the name of the city of Stalingrad now? History of Stalingrad

May 15, 2015

Remember the history of the Second World War - 1942, for example. The battle for the city of Stalingrad (as it is now called, probably, outside of Russia and not everyone knows), in which the Red Army gained success, turned the tide of the war back. It deservedly bears the title of Hero City.

The city of Stalingrad: what it is called now and what it used to be called

During the Paleolithic period, on the outskirts of the city, there was a site of primitive people, which was called Dry Mechetka. In the 16th century, in historical sources, this area is associated with the stay of representatives of the Tatar people. Since in the memoirs of the English traveler Jenkinson, "the abandoned Tatar city of Meskhet" is mentioned. In official royal documents, this city was first mentioned on July 2, 1589 under the name Tsaritsyn. So it was called until 1925.

As is known, in the 1920s and 1930s, cities were mainly called by the names and surnames (pseudonyms) of Soviet leaders and party leaders. The former Tsaritsyn in 1925 was the 19th city in the USSR in terms of the number of inhabitants, so its fate of renaming could not be avoided. In 1925 the city was renamed Stalingrad. It is under this name that he is best known, because the Battle of Stalingrad entered world history as the most important event of the Second World War.

In 1956, the debunking of the cult of Stalin began. The party had a lot of work in this direction, so the party leaders got to the renaming of the city only in 1961. Since 1961 and to the present time, the settlement has the name that very accurately characterizes its location - Volgograd (a city on the Volga).

Brief history of the city from 1589 to 1945

Initially, the city concentrated on a small island. Why is it based here? Because until that time people had already lived here, and the place was convenient for trade. The location on the Volga gave the settlement good chances for dynamic development. Real transformations in the city began to take place in the 19th century. The first school for children of the nobility, the first gymnasium, was opened, in which 49 children studied. In 1808, a doctor came to the city, who did a lot for the development of medicine in it (she was the first local doctor).

With the development of transport infrastructure (Volga-Don and other railways), since the late 1850s, industry and trade in the city have been developing very strongly, the well-being of residents has increased.

For the first three decades of the 20th century, the territory of Stalingrad was expanding. New industrial facilities, residential buildings, places of mass recreation of the population are being built. In 1942, the Germans came to the city of Stalingrad. What is this time called now? An occupation. 1942 and 1943 were the worst years in the history of the city.

Our time: the city is flourishing

Stalingrad - what city is it now? Volgograd. This name fully reflects its essence, because the river is one of the main trade routes. In the 1990-2000s, Volgograd acquired the status of a millionaire several times. Industry, services and recreation, sports are actively developing in the city. The football team of the Volgograd "Rotor" has played more than one season in the major league of Russia.

But still, the settlement played its most important role in history under the name "city of Stalingrad" (as it is now called, you should also not forget, because the old name is unlikely to return).

Source: fb.ru

Actual

Miscellaneous
Miscellaneous

Stalingrad is a hero city located on the great Russian river Volga. For some, he is a symbol of the resilience and selflessness of the Russian people.

Some associate this name with the name of I. V. Stalin - a rather ambiguous personality in the history of the country. In this article, we will tell you in detail what Stalingrad is called now, and how to find it on the map.

Founding history

Its story begins in 1589. The city occupied the island of Tsaritsyn, located at the confluence of the river of the same name into the Volga. Exactly river Tsaritsa this settlement owes its first name - Tsaritsyn. It has always been of strategic importance in military conflicts and various troubles. At the time of foundation, the garrison of the fortress fought off nomadic raids on river caravans in the region of the Volgodonsk isthmus.

During the troubled XVII-XVIII centuries. The city was destroyed and burned several times. The Time of Troubles became for him the period of the first serious trials. The city, which supported the false rulers, was burned by government troops. It was rebuilt in 1615 not on the island, but on the banks of the Volga.

During numerous uprisings and peasant wars of this period, Tsaritsyn was at the epicenter of events. The last significant clash of this time was the defense of the city from the detachments of Emelyan Pugachev. Tsaritsyn became the only settlement in the lower reaches of the Volga that did not submit to Pugachev. For courageous actions, the commandant of the fortress was awarded the rank of general.

Since the second half of the 18th century, due to the significantly expanded borders, the city has become a quiet and calm settlement.

The 19th century becomes a time of active expansion and development for Tsaritsyn. A school, a pharmacy and a coffee shop are opening. Industrial enterprises appear. In the second half of the century, the city becomes a major railway junction. The convenience of the position and the developed infrastructure make it possible to open large industrial enterprises in it: a metallurgical and gun plant, kerosene production.

The period of calm life and development was stopped by the tragic events of the early 20th century. During the Civil War Tsaritsyn became a stronghold of the Bolsheviks in the Volga region. He withstood 3 assaults by the Whites. In these events, I. V. Stalin, who at that time commanded the North Caucasian Military District, played an important role.

As a result of the fourth attempt, the settlement was briefly under the control of the white army. In early 1920, Tsaritsyn finally became subordinate to the Red Army. These events caused a lot of grief to the inhabitants of the city, and significantly weakened its economy.

Following these tragic events, famine came to the settlement, claiming the lives of several million people. Foreign charitable organizations provided assistance to the townspeople, and a good harvest and the end of the Civil War in 1923 marked the beginning of a new upsurge of the brave city on the Volga.

In the Soviet state, there could not be a city with a name reminiscent of the country's tsarist past. It was decided to rename it. in honor of a man who distinguished himself in the defense of the city from the White Guard detachments. It is under this name that the settlement on the Volga will become a world famous place.

20-30 years became for Stalingrad a period of active development of industry and the social sphere. Already existing enterprises were restored and new ones were built: tractor and hardware plants, a shipyard. Urban public transport was actively developing, housing construction was being carried out, education and medicine were developing. Stalingrad grew and improved.

Trial by war

Peacetime, both for the city and for the whole country, ended in 1941. Enterprises of Stalingrad completely switched to the production of military products. Women and children stood behind the machines. And in July 1942, the war came directly to the Volga. On July 17, the bloody and heroic Battle of Stalingrad began., which claimed the lives of more than a million people - soldiers, women, children, the elderly.

During the air raids, most of the urban areas were destroyed. But the Stalingraders, living in dugouts and fleeing air strikes in basements, continued to build fortifications and go to work at the machines. For a long 200 days, Soviet troops and residents of Stalingrad held back the Nazi army. The steadfastness, courage, heroism and selflessness of the Soviet people made it possible not only to defend the city, but also to surround (November 1942), and then defeat (February 1943) the army of General Paulus.

The significance of this victory cannot be overestimated. At the cost of huge human losses, the Soviet Union turned the tide of events in World War II. The plans of the Nazis were destroyed. Their allies changed their minds, and many of them began to look for ways out of hostilities.

And Stalingrad lay in ruins. About 35 thousand inhabitants survived, although before the war almost half a million people lived here. A huge number of dead bodies of people and animals on the streets threatened a new disaster - an epidemic. But the heroic city began to recover.

In a relatively surviving area - the village of Beketovka - city services were located, medical institutions were deployed, city transport began to work, and the most surviving buildings were repaired. But the war was not over yet, and the main resources were used to restore the defense industry.

Most of the Stalingrad factories resumed work already in 1943, and in 1944 already assembled tanks and tractors rolled off the assembly line.

The 50s became a period of another active construction in Stalingrad. The housing stock was actively restored and public buildings were built. New streets and squares appeared. And in 1952, the Volgodonsk Canal named after I.V. Stalin was opened. A lot of objects in the city were dedicated to the "Leader of the Peoples". But that was until 1953.

City after the debunking of the cult of personality

After Stalin's death, N. S. Khrushchev, who replaced him, began "debunking the cult of personality." Monuments to Stalin were demolished, the names of objects named after him were changed. This phenomenon could not ignore the glorious Volga city. In 1961, Stalingrad was renamed Volgograd..

Volgograd still actively developed and grew. In 1967, the memorial complex Mamaev Kurgan was built, supplemented in 1985 with the panorama "Battle of Stalingrad". In the 60-80s, new industrial enterprises, educational and cultural institutions were opened. The transport network was actively built: the Astrakhan bridge, Volgograd metro stations, highways connecting the city with neighboring settlements.

The post-Soviet life of Volgograd, like the whole country, began with a decline in all areas of industry and economy. Enterprises were closed, residential and public construction stopped, numerous scammers and dubious enterprises appeared.

With the beginning of the 2000s, life in Volgograd began to improve again. Frozen objects were completed, the transport network and public institutions are being developed. But even in this peaceful time, Volgograd residents are tested for stamina and fortitude. The city has repeatedly become the object of terrorist attacks.

Modern disputes about the name of Volgograd

Now there are disputes about the need to return the historical name of the city - Stalingrad. This idea has both supporters and opponents. This idea appeared not in the Volgograd society, but in the circles of the capital's politicians. About 30% of Volgograd residents support the initiative to return the name Stalingrad to the city. They justify their position with the following arguments:

• renaming is a tribute to the feat of the people in the Battle of Stalingrad;
• this will help raise the level of patriotism among young people in the first place;
• it is under this name that the settlement is known all over the world;
• Stalingrad and Stalin are not the same thing;
• Volgograd needs to return its historical name.

Opponents of the idea of ​​renaming point to the fact that the historical name of the city on the Volga is Tsaritsyn - the name given to it at the time of its foundation. They also note that the majority of the country's inhabitants still associate the name Stalingrad with the name of I.V. Stalin, whose role in the history of the country is ambiguous. Renaming will require huge funds that local authorities do not have.

There is also a third point of view. Many residents do not care in the city with what name to live. Volgograd residents want solutions to their pressing economic problems.

In the end, the local authorities went along and officially assigned the name Stalingrad to the city for the duration of the days, reminiscent of difficult trials and heroic events:

• February 2 - Day of military glory;
• February 23 - Defender of the Fatherland Day;
• May 8 - Day of awarding the city the title of "hero city";
• May 9 - Victory Day;
• June 22 - Day of memory and sorrow;
• August 23 - Day of Remembrance for the victims of the bombing of Stalingrad;
• September 2 - Day of the end of the war;
• November 19 - Day of the beginning of the defeat of the Nazi troops near Stalingrad;
• December 9 - Heroes Day.

It does not matter what the brave city on the Volga was called: Tsaritsyn in the era of the monarchy, Stalingrad in the era of the formation of Soviet power and the bloody World War, or Volgograd in modern times. The only important thing is that this city has always been on guard for the peace of the country and bravely resisted all troubles and challenges.

Video

From this video you will learn little-known historical facts about this famous city.

You can get acquainted with the history of Volgograd by watching this video.

This video will tell you about one of the most terrible and most famous periods in the life of Stalingrad.

You will learn about the world-famous Battle of Stalingrad from this video.

The second part of the video about the battles near Stalingrad.

This video tells about how Stalingrad was reborn after the Great Patriotic War.

Volgograd or Stalingrad? The controversy continues to this day.